Pope at Mass in Saurimo: 'The Risen One illumines our path and sanctifies us'
By Deborah Castellano Lubov
"He, the Risen One, illumines for us the path to the Father and with the strength of the Spirit He sanctifies us so that we may transform our way of life in conformity with His love."
Pope Leo XIV gave this comforting reminder during the Mass he celebrated in Saurimo, Angola, on Monday as the Pope continues the third leg of his four-nation Apostolic Journey.
In his homily, he recalled that in every part of the world, the Church lives as a people who walk as disciples of Christ, our brother and Redeemer, and the Good News, His Gospel message, sustains our journey. "A journey that," Pope Leo said, "has brought me here with you today!"
READ POPE LEO XIV'S FULL HOMILY
"In the joy and beauty of our gathering, united in the name of Jesus," he invited, "let us listen with open hearts to the Word of salvation for it helps us reflect on the motive and purpose for which we follow the Lord."
He recalled that when the Son of God became man, He performed striking miracles in order to manifest the will of the Father. "He made light shine in the darkness by giving sight to the blind, he gave a voice to the oppressed by loosening the tongues of the mute, he slaked our thirst for justice by multiplying bread for the poor and weak," Pope Leo marveled, acknowledging that, "Anyone who heard about these works set out in search of Jesus."
Need to seek Christ for the right reasons
At the same time, the Holy Father said, the Lord looks into our heart and asks us "whether we seek Him out of gratitude or for our own self-interest, with calculation or with love."
The Pope remembered when Jesus said to those who were following Him: “You are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves” (Jn 6:26), as he stressed that the crowd saw the Lord "as means to an end, a provider of services."
If He had not given them something to eat, Pope Leo said, His actions and teachings would not have interested them.
This, he warned, "happens when genuine faith is replaced with superstitious practices, in which God becomes an idol that is sought only when it is advantageous to us and only for as long as it is." The Holy Father recalled that there had been and sometimes are erroneous motives for seeking Christ, "particularly when He is considered to be a guru or a good luck charm."
Does not reject the insincere search, but encourages conversion
Yet, Jesus, Pope Leo noted, does not reject this insincere search, but encourages its conversion.
"He does not dismiss the crowd, but invites everyone to examine what stirs in our hearts," he said, stressing: "Christ calls us to freedom. He does not want servants or clients, rather He seeks brothers and sisters to whom He can totally dedicate Himself. To respond with faith to this love, it is not enough to hear Jesus speak: one must accept the meaning of His words.
Neither he continued, is it enough to see what Jesus does: one must follow and imitate Him.
Only when in the sign of shared bread, we see the will of the Savior who gives Himself for us, Pope Leo explained, do we draw closer to a true encounter with Jesus. At that point, the Lord's admonition to the crowd, the Holy Father said, is transformed into an invitation: “Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life.”
Jesus teaches us proper way to be sustained forever
On the contrary, the Holy Father noted, Jesus teaches us the correct way to search for the bread of life, food which sustains us forever. He marveled therefore that the crowd receives an even greater response from Christ who "does not give us food that passes away, but bread that lasts because it is the food of eternal life."
The Pope observed that Jesus' gift sheds light on our current situation. "We can see today how the hope of many people is frustrated by violence, exploited by the powerful and defrauded by the rich." He lamented that when hearts are corrupted by injustice, the bread of all becomes the possession of a few.
"In the face of these evils," the Pope reassured, "Christ hears the cry of the people and renews our history by lifting us up from every fall, comforting us in every suffering and encouraging us in our mission."
"Just as the Eucharist is the living bread that He never ceases to give us," Pope Leo said, "so too His history knows no end. "
The faith that saves life
"For this reason," the Holy Father marveled, "the Risen One opens up our lives through the power of His Spirit and removes the end of our history, that is death. Christ lives! He is our Redeemer. This is the Gospel that we share, making all the people of the earth our brothers and sisters. This is the proclamation that transforms sin into forgiveness. This is the faith that saves life!"
The Easter witness, therefore, certainly pertains to Christ, the Crucified One who is risen, but -- Pope Leo said -- it also pertains even to us because in Him the proclamation of our resurrection finds its voice.
The Pope said we did not come into the world to die. "We were not born to become slaves either to the corruption of the flesh or that of the soul," he continued, decrying, "every form of oppression, violence, exploitation and dishonesty negates the Resurrection of Christ, the supreme gift of our freedom."
Pope Leo clarified that this liberation from death does not happen only at the end of our days, but every day of our lives.
He asked, "What must we do to welcome such a gift? The Gospel itself teaches us: “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent” (Jn 6:29). Yes, let us believe!"
With this sentiment, the Holy Father reminded the faithful before him of the Psalm which states: “Happy are those who walk in the law of the Lord.”
The way that God has opened for us never fails
The Pope stressed that the Lord leads our paths, and we are to proceed following His wise direction.
"With the Gospel in your heart," he encouraged, "you will have courage in the face of difficulties and disappointments: the way that God has opened for us, never fails."
The Lord, he insisted, always walks with us, so that we may continue on His path. "Christ Himself," he noted, "guides and strengthens our journey."
Pope Leo concluded by reminding the faithful that through them, "the initiatives of divine grace bear good fruit" and prayed that the witness of the martyrs and of the saints encourage them to pursue a path of hope, reconciliation and peace.
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